Paradox and Dream
by GreenTee
Summary: Twenty years after the curse is broken, Kyo and Tohru struggle to raise their children separate from the influences of the Sohma family's influence.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **So this story kind of came out of the blue. I was trying to find a good Fruits Basket fanfiction but I wasn't having much luck. I blame it on the fact that the manga ended so completely and perfectly that the universe is hard to add to and interpret. Anyway, I decided to write a future fic. It's my first one so be nice. It's a nice escape from school. That being said, updates may be slow starting in September, depending on my workload. I will try to publish frequently. Thanks for reading!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Fruits Basket or any of its characters. I do own these kids and this plot.

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><p>Tohru stood on the balcony of her small home, absentmindedly taking sheets and other articles of clothing off the clothes line and folding them neatly into the laundry basket that lay at her feet. She sighed happily, feeling the warm summer air caress her porcelain skin, heating her body as she hummed a namely tune to herself.<p>

No, in the last twenty years, not much had changed. Tohru still loved doing laundry, cooking, and other household chores that had always come as second nature. Twenty years hadn't changed the sense of accomplishment that followed a hard day's work done, or the joy she could see on her family's faces while enjoying her home cooking. Tohru still completed a balancing act, working nights so that her family could come home to a clean home and a warm plate after a busy day at work or school. Although she often found herself exhausted, she adored the serenity of mindlessly accomplishing tasks, allowing herself to relax and enjoy another beautiful day.

_'Aww Mom, today is beautiful isn't it? The way the sun is shining and just the right amount of wind! Perfect for laundry! Hopefully I can get it all done before the kids come home and add more clothes to the mix, we wouldn't want the laundry to get too ahead of us, would we Mom?'_

Tohru quickened her pace slightly, noticing the clock on the wall as she passed into the laundry room. _'The kids should be home soon… We at least Katsuya-kun… I wonder if Reika-chan will even come home tonight…? She and Kyo-kun got into a pretty bad fight last night'_.

Tohru's shoulders fell and she ran her fingers through her short hair with worry. Nobody could get into fights quite like her husband and Reika. These fights gave the ones of Kyo and Yuki's teen years a run for their money. Although it never led to a physical altercation, Reika's venomous works often dealt the harshest blows to Kyo, resulting in the two going weeks on end without speaking sometimes.

'_She did promise to walk her brother home today though…Reika-chan is usually good for her word…I just hope she's not too angry to remember.'_ Tohru sighed heavily as the door opened abruptly, shacking the windows as it violently slammed.

"There kiddo, home safe and sound."

"Ouch, Reika-oneechan! That hurts!" The young boy moaned as the smirking teenager tousled his hair lovingly.

Tohru smiled at the scene in front of her. Although they were eight years apart, Reika and Katsuya never succumbed the gap that Yuki and Ayame faced while they were younger. Although Reika always complained, she always came back home at her happiest after picking up her younger brother from school. Letting out a light giggle at her children, Tohru made her presence known causing Katsuya to run up to his mother, wrapping his arms around her waist, burying his head into her flat abdomen.

"Mama!" Katsuya cried. Reika threw her school bag down, removing her shoes in the foyer. Tohru sunk down to her knees, securing her son in her arms, a wide smile cemented on her face. She met the gaze of her daughter whom abruptly glanced away, a scowl haunting her visage. Tohru regarded her daughter silently. She had cut her naturally reddish-brown hair into a pixie cut, dying it a light violet. The color seemed to change with her mood, recently shifting from deep auburn to lime green to bright blue over the course of three weeks. Her face was riddled with piercings, anything from the six or seven in her ears to the hoop through the right side of her nose to the stud under the left side of her mouth. Each time she came home with something new, her husband fought Reika less and less over it. _'Such a shame,'_ Tohru thought sadly _"She has such a beautiful face…'_ Reika had recently taken to covering her porcelain skin with an assortment of cosmetics. Her reddish-brown gaze was intimating surrounded by dark eye shadow and mascara.

"Thank you so much for picking your brother up from school, Reika-chan!" Tohru attempted to bow to her daughter but was pinned down by her eight year old who was still attached to her at the hip. Reika simply waved her mother off nonchalantly muttering something that soundly like "Whatever". Tohru inwardly sighed watching her daughter walk up the stairs to her room. She hid up in that room all night, only coming down briefly at dinner. Reika seemed to be slipping, the happy little girl she used to know becoming a distant memory. With one final embrace Katsuya released his mother flashing an identical smile to the one she wore. "What do you say Katsuya-kun, shall we get dinner started?" He nodded furiously in agreement.

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><p>This was the part of the day Reika dreaded. Not for the mountains of homework she had to do – she probably wouldn't do it anyway- but for the utter solitude she felt. Sure she could mimic Katsuya and help her mother with household tasks –no, that was something a good daughter would do. A perfect daughter.<p>

She was far from perfect.

Starting a few years ago, the close relationship between Reika and her parents began to break down. She and her father began to disagree on the smallest of things; he wanted her to continue her martial arts training – saying she had natural talent – Reika refused claiming she was disinterested by the idea of it all. She stopped visiting her father's dojo. Kyo took it as a betrayal. He looked at her with full eyes.

Eyes full of disappointment. Reika couldn't stand to have her father look at her that way. She began to change her appearance. Shifting herself from that sweet and innocent looking child, to the unapproachable individual she is today. She could barely be in her father's proximity without a simple comment turning into a few blown battle.

Changing out of her school uniform, Reika lounged on her twin bed, noting the contrast between her side of the room and Keiko's. Keiko had long since stopped trying to get Reika to clean up her side, as such, the room now had piles of clothes and books scattered on the floor. Keiko was compulsive over tidiness – a trait she and her mother shared- even when she was swamped with work, she would take a couple minutes to make sure her side looked neat and tidy, always flashing Reika that disgusted look when she was done.

"_How can you live amongst such filth?" _Keiko once asked her after one of her obsessive cleans.

"_Easy; I live with you don't I?" _Reika had responded, inwardly complimenting herself on her wittiness. The look of hurt that passed over Keiko's appearance was so quick that if Reika had blinked she would have missed it. _'Not that Keiko would have said anything anyway, she's far too perfect for that…'_ Reika thought bitterly.

She pulled her loose skinny jeans on paired with a tight black v-neck and reclined, making shapes out of the popcorn on the ceiling. _'Maybe I can catch a nap,'_ she thought idly, _"after all, I need all my strength for dinner tonight…"  
><em>

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><p>Putting the finishing touches on the cod soup she was preparing, Tohru worked happily in the kitchen, humming a tune under her breath. Katsuya had departed from her side almost a half hour ago to finish his homework before dinner was prepared and Tohru enjoyed the calm and serenity of cooking. It allowed her to completely turn her brain off from the worries of day to day life and create something that brought her family so much happiness.<p>

'_Well the cod is just about finished browning, I guess I could combine the broth and the-'_ Tohru felt two strong hands wrap around her waist, waking her abruptly from her thoughts.

"Ah! Kyo! You scared me!" Her cheeks reddened as her husband rested his head on the top of her head. They probably looked awkward to an outsider, a muscular man, standing 6' 2" arched over his tiny, slender wife, but they didn't care. To them, this was comfortable.

"You would think after twenty years you would hear me walk in," He laughed deeply, shaking Tohru's body. He planted a quick peck on the top of her head before adding "That smells lovely…" in a small voice that Tohru had to strain her ears to hear.

"Papa!" Katsuya cried happily finally discovering his father's arrival. "Papa! I did my homework early tonight! Can we go train? Can you show me that high kick again? I think with little more practice I can finally get it!" Katsuya began to babble excitedly, his eyes wide as he began to raddled off countless details of his day; his thoughts on his martial arts training and various things his friends said.

"Katsuya if you keep talking that fast, you'll turn blue." All eyes were on the tall, slim girl leaning on the arch of the kitchen.

"Welcome home, Onee-chan!" Katsuya ran over to his older sister, enveloping the bottom half of her body. Keiko stood at a staggering 5' 9", towering over every other member of her family, other than her father. Her dark brown hair was neatly tied back in a high ponytail, allowing her piercing gaze to be unobstructed. She wore loose skinny jeans and a fashionable top, paired with sunglasses that rested atop her head.

"Hello Katsuya," She quickly returned his hug, her face never changing from its serious expression. "Hello Mother, Father." She regarded them both with quick bows. "Katsuya, as part of your training, why don't you run this up to my room?" She motioned to her western style school bag sitting in the foyer beside her shoes. "By the smell of it, I would say that dinner is almost finished as well…might as well go get Reika while you're up there."

"Sure!" Katsuya released his sister and bolted over to the school bag excitedly. He never backed down from a chance to get stronger, even by doing random household exercises. Lifting the bag with a burst of energy, the bag hit the floor with a sudden bang. "Keiko-onee! What do you have in this bag? Rocks?" Katsuya yelled lightheartedly.

"Two medical dictionaries, actually. Just leave it there if it's too heavy. I will take it up after dinner." She stated evenly, she walked into the dining room and taking her spot at the table, awaiting her mother's delicious meal.

"Sohma Katsuya never backs down from a challenge!" he chanted happily, thrusting the bag over his shoulders, teetering a little as he adjusted his weight, then bolting up the stairs.

"Don't throw your back out, honey!" Tohru yelled after him, returning her attention to the stove. She batted Kyo's hand away as he attempted to steal a piece of cod from the pan. Sighing, Kyo left the kitchen and took his place at the head of the table beside his daughter. Hearing a distinct thud from Keiko and Reika's room indicating the backpack had been thrown into place, Keiko let out a small sigh, lowering her head so it fit into her hand resting on the table.

"I hope he didn't break anything when he threw that. That probably wasn't my greatest idea." she muttered under her breath. Kyo flashed her a knowing look. As Tohru steadily placed the food onto the table, the sound of feet descending down the stairs flooded the house, revealing the two younger Sohma children. Katsuya bounded happily to his seat, leaving a space for Tohru on Kyo's left. Reika avoided eye contact with everyone at the table, dropping dramatically to her chair. Her father raised an eyebrow at her appearance, noticing her new hair color.

"Interesting choice of color there, Reika." Kyo muttered, avoiding eye contact.

"Shut up, old man."

Dinner had begun.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Fruits Basket or any of its respective characters. I do own the kids and the plot, though I make no money from this story.

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><p>Things were relatively awkward at dinner that night. Reika was trying her best not to take her eyes off her foot to avoid making eye contact with her family member – her father and her sister in particular. After the comment about her hair, the tone had been set for the rest of dinner, making the light-hearted Sohmas extremely uncomfortable. Either Keiko didn't notice or didn't care, eating her meal as usual.<p>

Tohru, for her part, felt the most shaken by the silence. A rambler by nature, silence always made her feel especially uncomfortable and uneasy. She cleared her throat causing everyone's eyes to meet her. "So… how was everyone's day?"

"Fine." They all said in unison, going right back to their respective cod soup.

'_Well that failed…'_ Tohru though, her shoulders falling in defeat. Her children could be such introverts sometimes. _'They must get it from their father. Actually, I'm a little shocked Katsuya-kun isn't saying anything…' _

Every dinner in the Sohma house was the same. Tohru serves dinner, Katsuya and Kyo get caught up in discussing the pros and cons of some martial arts move, followed by Katsuya and Tohru's happy chatter about their days which is mostly ignored by the other members of the family. Keiko, being a quick eater and totally uninvolved in any discussion, asks to be dismissed but Tohru makes her stay till everyone is finished. Kyo then begins to ask his children how school was, followed by a usually ugly argument between Reika and Kyo because of her lack of attendance on a regular basis. That usually resolved itself in a lot of cussing and slamming of doors. Katsuya and Tohru try to break it up, Keiko rolls her eyes and goes off to start her homework.

Tonight broke the mold with one phrase.

"I have some news." Keiko stated without looking up from her soup.

Tohru and Katsuya's eyes lit up, happy that the silence was broken and a conversation was born.

"Hatori-san called me today." She said mildly.

Kyo's head shot up instantly. It was rare that the other Sohmas ever made it into conversation in the house. "Hatori? As in Sohma Hatori? From Tokyo?"

"Indeed." Keiko muttered. "I have been talking to him about the pre-med program that I'm in, exchanging experiences, asking advice, that sort of thing."

'_I had no idea…' _Tohru thought sadly, feeling instantly like a bad mother. She tried to have a pulse on the happenings of events in her children's life but since Keiko started university she rarely ever saw her, let alone had a meaningful conversation with her daughter. _'I guess as they grow older, this type of thing is only natural. But still…I thought she would tell us if she was talking to the main family…' _

"As a part of my program, I need to complete a residence in both my pre-med and regular medical school experience. Since the pre-med residence is targeted at general medical practices, it would be best if I worked for a ward that allowed me to get the most exposure to the most common cases." Keiko explained.

"Try speaking Japanese for once Keiko, maybe then everyone would understand what you were getting at." Reika muttered darkly earning her a withering look from her father – which she instantly rolled her eyes at. Tohru silently thanked her daughter, in an odd way; she was having trouble keeping up. She assumed Katsuya and Kyo were having the same problem.

Keiko sighed and began slowly rubbing her temples in frustration. "In layman's terms," she began, shooting Reika a look, "Hatori-san offered me a residence in his clinic for the summer so I can get experience toward my major." Keiko rattled off, slower than before. "He offered me a place to stay in his house beside the clinic, so I wouldn't have to find a summer apartment in the city."

"Wow really? Keiko-onee gets to go to Tokyo for the summer? That's so cool!" Katsuya cried excitedly.

"Wait, how is that fair?" Reika stood up heatedly. Although she tried to mask it, she was sure her parents could see the hurt hidden in her eyes. She hadn't been allowed to go to Tokyo since before Katsuya was born, though she always dreamt of going back as a teenager. The city looked as though it breathed life; Kyoto suffocated Reika. She yearned for an escape.

"Whoa, we never said she was allowed to go." Kyo responded back as calmly as he could manage, trying to salvage what he could of a peaceful dinner.

"WELL YOU'RE GOING TO!" Reika screamed, full rage directed at the head of the table.

"Reika-chan, please sit down-" Tohru attempted, only to be cut off by her daughter's rage.

"WHY DON'T YOU MAKE ME!" Reika picked up her half empty bowl of cod soup and tossed it against the far wall, barely missing Keiko's head as she exited the room. The bowl shattered leaving a pool of cod and shards on the ground.

"REIKA!" Kyo fumed, "GET BACK HERE!"

"FUCKIN' BILL ME!" Reika screeched as she exited the house into the cool night air. She let her feet take her far from the small Sohma grounds and into the Kyoto night.

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><p>"Gods DAMN that child. She's got some DAMN nerve talking to us like that." Dinner that night had completely fallen apart after Reika's departure. Keiko took Katsuya to the back yard and watched him do some basic drills while she worked on last minute assignments before the summer began. Tohru started cleaning up but, upon Kyo's request, left the shattered bowl on the floor.<p>

"Kyo!" Tohru scolded in a stern whisper. She was putting the finishing touches on her outfit before she left for her job as a nighttime pastry chef at a large Kyoto bakery. It wasn't her dream job but it paid the bills and allowed her to bake, something she loved to do. "Don't damn her Kyo-kun," she stated a little lighter, "She has a bad temper but clearly she is hurt…"

"I don't give a flying fuck if she's hurt!" Kyo bit off, immediately regretting his words as they caused Tohru's face to crumble. "Gah!" He recovered, "Sorry, I didn't mean that. She brings out the worst in me sometimes. She makes me feel just as aggravated and angry as I did when a teenager. I feel like she's doing anything she can just to piss me off!"

Tohru nodded subtly in agreement. She'd watched it happed over the last few year; the slow collapse of her daughter and husband's relationship. Kyo hardly ever yelled at his kids, even more rarely at her, but as soon as Reika showed any type of sass towards anyone, Kyo snapped and turned right back in to that bitter, angry person she first met twenty years ago. Tohru could tell it was slowly killing her husband to be so bitter and irritated all the time.

"Kyo-kun, please don't take this the wrong way, but I think it may be time for you and Reika-chan to take a break from one another for a while." She noticed Kyo's head whip around quickly to look at her, Tohru through her hands up in front of herself to reassure him. "I-I-I don't mean that you're a bad parent or anything! You're a g-g-great parent Kyo-kun! The best!" she trailed off, not wanting to sound like she was being critical of her husband.

"Hey, relax. I know you didn't mean it like that." He muttered, waiting for her to continue.

Tohru composed herself, removing her engagement and wedding rings and setting them on her nightstand (not wanting them to contaminate the dough at work) "I just mean that maybe you and Reika-chan need to separate for a while. I just afraid that if we keep trying to control her, parent her the same way we parented Keiko-chan at her age, she may feel like we are smothering her."

"Maybe…" Kyo sighed. "He looked at the clock realizing it was time for Tohru to get to work. He left, allowing her to finish off her preparations in peace. _'Smothering her?' _He thought a little shocked. _'Have I really been smothering her? Impossible.' _

Watching her husband leave the room, Tohru smiled to herself. _'If only Kyo could see how alike he and Reika-chan truly are. Reika is just like Kyo was, unruly, restless; she just wants to feel like she's a part of something. Her temper is just like his, she needs to learn how to control it. Maybe we've sheltered her too much and she doesn't know how to control it…' _Tohru reflected briefly looking at the clock. _'OH NO! I'm going to be late!' _She raced out of her and Kyo's bedroom and out the door, trying her hardest to avoid falling down the stairs as she raced to work.

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><p>Reika took a final drag of her cigarette before crushed it under her foot. She knew it was a dirty, unhealthy habit but after she lost her temper like she did tonight, she felt it was only fitting to punish her body like this. Not to mention she was totally addicted.<p>

'_Gods, I am SUCH an idiot!' _Reika shouted inside her mind. She had cooled off around hour one of her angry walk around Kyoto. It was now the fourth hour and she wasn't so much angry as she was pissed. At herself. _'I can't believe that I yelled at Mom like that! I never yell at Mom! She's way too sweet! She didn't even do anything wrong! Why can't I control myself! What if she hates me now? And Dad, he totally hates me now, not that there was any question before. I can't believe I threw that plate! Mom probably had to clean that up! Gah – SUCH AN IDIOT!' _

Too caught up in her internally chastising herself, Reika completely lost track of where her feet led her, causing her to walk straight into a tall object in front of her, throwing her backwards on her ass.

"Shit!" she muttered to herself, rubbing her behind slightly. Her eyes began to search the area in front of her, trying to find what she walked into only to find a burly, bald man looking disgruntled and confused. A blush crept over Reika's cheeks, feeling stupid for blindly walking in to strangers. Trying to pull herself up in the least embarrassing way proved to be a bit of a challenge, as the stranger above her watched her with angry eyes.

"I am so sorry sir, I must have lost track of where I was walking." Reika muttered, averting her eyes. Her mind quickly emptied of dinner's events and she began plotting the quickest way back home.

"Listen kid, maybe you should show some respect to your elders!" The man shouted angrily, the veins in his forehead and scalp clearly visible in the skewed moonlight. As Reika attempted to brush off the statement with a wave of her hand, as she usually did after an initial apology, the man grabbed her wrist.

A little shocked by the encounter, Reika attempted to rip her arm out of the stranger's hold. "Hey! What's your deal! Get the fuck off of me!" _'Jeez is EVERYONE trying to piss me off today?' _she thought bitterly. "Listen, I don't want any trouble! It was just an accident!" she bit off trying to free her right arm.

"Well trouble's what you've got, sunshine!" He laughed darkly, grabbing her other arm and pulling her off the ground and up to his face, so that she was fully suspended in the air. "You know," he leaned in so that his voice was a hard whisper, "It's such a shame you don't have any hair, I like my women with a little something to garb on to…" His dark laugh filled Reika's mind and she felt completely at a loss of what to do in this kind of situation although she remembered her father teaching her and Keiko as kids.

Before she knew what was going on she was back on the ground, free from the clamps of hands that bound her arms.

"GET YOUR FILTHY FUCKING HANDS OFF MY DAUGHTER!"

Reika's eyes opened as wide as they would allow. _'Dad? What the hell is he doing here?'_ A warm feeling flooded through her body before she could catch herself. Despite the huge blow out that occurred at home, he was exactly the person she wanted to see right now. Looking up, she saw her Dad beating her assailant repeatedly. Although the man had been at least 6' 5", he was now in a ball on the ground. Her father looked like the giant she remembered from when she was a kid, back when he was her hero and she was his biggest fan.

"MAYBE THIS WILL TEACH YOU NOT TO ATTACK LITTLE GIRLS!" Kyo screeched, as he stopped beating the now unconscious man. He then brought his hard gaze to his daughter, still laying in a heap on the ground. Now feeling self conscious, and a little stupid, by remaining on the ground, Reika struggled clumsily to stand up. Walking over, Kyo extended his hand to help her. Reluctantly she took his hand, blushing and avoiding his eyes in doing so.

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><p>The walk home was a quiet one. Without even realizing, Reika had walked a solid thirty minutes from the house, close to where her mother worked. The area was infamous for being transitional and often made the news for drug and violence issues. Because of its proximity to the richer part of town, it was simple to go over one street too far into this ugly neighborhood, but it wasn't one that a person who has lived in Kyoto her whole life should have made, dazed or not. Reika was embarrassed and reluctant to make any kind of conversation with her father.<p>

Unfortunately, she wasn't so lucky.

"What the hell were you thinking?" It wasn't so much a question as a statement, for before Reika could even open her mouth, her father shot, "Do you know what could of happened if I didn't show up when I did? You could have been RAPED, Reika. You could have been KILLED. Killed! Are you stupid? Where you looking for trouble?"

"I had the situation under control." She countered, trying to sound calm.

"NO YOU DIDN'T REIKA! I saw you! You were just sitting there, you gave up! Were you even listening when I taught you escape maneuvers? You could have easily escaped that! What the hell were you thinking, Reika?" They stopped walking now. A look flooded over her father's face that was clearly visible even in the dim moonlight. He looked more concerned than she had ever seen him before.

'_Shit, he was actually worried about me…' _ She thought, a little taken aback. It wasn't as if she expected him to not be concerned, her father wasn't a heartless demon, she thought he would be more…angry. Or disappointed that she didn't use his techniques, or pissed off that she had been so stupid to walk around in that neighborhood. She searched his face for these emotions in vain. The only thing she saw was vivid worry. He had the face of a parent on the verge of a breakdown if something had happened to his child. Just then, Kyo did something he hadn't done in over five years.

He enveloped his daughter in a huge hug, pulling her so completely into his arms, Reika had a little trouble breathing. Despite the length of time that they hadn't made physical contact, it wasn't awkward. It felt natural, as if she was coming home. "I am so happy you are okay, you have no idea how worried I was…" he whispered so quietly she struggled to hear it.

They stood there, frozen in time for a few moments, before breaking and walking the rest of the home in silence.

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><p>It was past 12:30 when Reika finally crossed the threshold of her shared room, greeted by the complete darkness of her sleeping sister. Flicking the small bedside table light on, Reika saw her sister passed out on her bed, face down, in the middle of various books and loose leaf paper that she had been using for notes. Although the school year was basically over, Keiko never stopped trying to cram that last bit of studying in before exams.<p>

'_Well at least we know she's human…'_ Reika though lightly, allowing herself to smile a little at the scene. Carefully, she cleared the bed of the books and papers stacking them beside her bed near her school bag. She lifted the blanket over her sister causing Keiko to snuggle in unconsciously.

This Keiko, the relaxed one, was the one she looked up to as a child. The same kid that she used to spar (and let her win) against when they were little, the same girl that stood up for her when the older children started to pick on her when she started elementary school. Staring at that sweet, innocent Keiko almost made Reika cry. _'This has to be the most emotional day of all time, good gods, I am getting soft." _

Shaking the nostalgic thoughts from her mind, Reika swiftly changed out of her dirty clothes from the day and into her pajama pants and tank top for the night. Turning off the light, she allowed herself to be consumed by the darkness and collapse onto her bed with a small thud. Today had been a whopper, that's for sure.

'_I'm still upset that Keiko gets to go to the city – it really isn't fair- but maybe I can ride to the train station with her or something. Even a brief change in scenery is still just that.'_ She thought optimistically, finally feeling the fatigue of the day's events seep into her bones. _'…and tomorrow I'm going to have to deal with Dad tomorrow…I should probably apologize to Mom for being such a bitch…she really loves me…maybe Dad does…too…'_

With that Reika joined her sister in a peaceful sleep.

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><p><strong>AN: **And there it is! Chapter two! I tried to make this one a little longer than chapter one (I think by like a thousand words); just as a personal FYI short fanfics aren't my favorite visually. Maybe that's just me. I also debated ending the chapter after the moment with Kyo and Reika but this sweet scene between the sisters was calling to me. Just to clear a few things up:

Keiko is eighteen, almost nineteen, and is finishing her first year of pre-med school. I'm not sure if that's how university works in Japan so I just based things on the American and Canadian way of secondary education.

Oh and I'm also not 100% on if I should up the rating because of Kyo and Reika's language. The language in this chapter will pretty much be the standard way the characters will curse; a couple f- bombs here and there, some lesser swears thrown in where appropriate too. Thoughts? I don't think it's bad enough to be M… a teenager should be able to handle that kind of stuff.

This will probably be my last update before school starts on Thursday, August 25, but I will still commit to updating weekly, usually at the beginning of the week. My first semester is not too bad so as long as college applications don't eat me I think it'll be okay.

Sorry for making this the longest author's not of all time! Thanks for reading!


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